Introduction

My cycling life was late in starting. As a youngster I never owned a bike and it was a while before I was able to ride one. When all my primary school classmates stayed behind after lessons to do their Cycling Proficiency training I happily walked home: I may have been unable to cycle a bike but I was free of any extracurricular activities, something which was probably more important to me at the time. After a patchy beginning - at university the first bicycle I ever owned was stolen within a month of buying it and the second, some time later, lasted only a few months longer - I eventually fell in with John, an enthusiastic and adventurous cyclist who opened up the wider possibilities that bike riding can offer. I owe him a lot as I am not sure I would have taken that particular path without him or at least not followed it so far. As a result the last decade has seen me criss-cross this island of ours on any number of multi-day trips in all seasons and in all weathers and I have seen some of the best that Britain has to offer and at a pace that has allowed me to appreciate it more fully. 

Despite diarising many of my other journeys I have tended to not record my cycling trips; a three or four day ride seemed too brief a time to offer up memories of substance. However, the fragmented memories I do have of some of those rides - of the landscapes crossed and the effort spent - are so vivid I now regret not having a fuller record that would have captured something much richer and more complete. Long trips may offer an extended narrative but there is an intensity in those shorter journeys that is just as compelling.

With that in mind I determined to keep a diary on a forthcoming trip across the country, firstly from east to west following the 174 mile Hadrian’s Cycleway from South Shields to Ravenglass and then returning via the 136 mile Coast to Coast route from Whitehaven to Newcastle upon Tyne. It would be a journey of about ten days and take me along parts of the iconic Hadrian’s Wall, something I have yet to visit, and through the scenery of the Lake District and North Pennine National Park. I am hoping that the mix of heritage and natural beauty will offer variety enough for both absorbing memories and a worthwhile narrative. 

Hadrian’s Cycleway 

Coast to Coast